Illuminations - Taty Lopez, Anna Ryabtsov and Jenny Brover

Anna Ryabtsov
Born in Moscow Russia, Anna Ryabtsov immigrated to the US in the mid-90’s. During her childhood, Ryabtsov frequently traveled around various parts of the world which later sparked her interest with the idea of being lost in strange places. Ryabtsov’s career began to emerge during her late highschool years immersed in the darkroom. Her studies then continued while attending Montclair State University while receiving her BFA in Photography and Psychology. Currently Ryabtsov is working as a commercial photographer based out of New York and New Jersey while planning her next project of fine art documentation of the American southwest.

This series “Ant Farm” expresses mankind's innate pull toward the “journey”.The people are all random passers-by, strategically placed in the landscape from a distance by following their natural movement until they reach a pivotal point in the frame. All identities are kept anonymous in order to use the figure as a symbol of collectivism rather than concentrate on personal identity. The images were taken in the deserts of death valley and beaches of south carolina so capture vast fields of color. Ant Farm is influenced by Carl Sagan’s pale blue dot as a reminder of our microscopic existence in our universe and Herman Hesse’s “ Journey to the East”. By playing with the sense of scale in relation to the landscape, I aim to theoretically minimize our ego, fears and struggles to a mere shadow imprint. These photographs exist in a world of chance and induce the idea of impermanence.

Taty Lopez
I am a Portrait, Culture, Travel Photographer and Multidisciplinary Artist born in Ecuador and currently residing in New Jersey. For me art, as well as photography, is a journey of self-discovery, connection, understanding and transformation. As a photographer, my subject matter is the human condition.
My work centers on the intimate intersection between humans and nature, taking as my focal point the cultural diversity, the natural environment and the identity of every human being I engage with. For me, pictures are portals that show us the wonders of the world, I strive to create images that show those wonders, images that tell a story in our universe by reminding us our ancient rhythms, images that help society to remember their lost relationship with nature and shifts their cultural vision, images that enable us to see nature, traditions, identities as they truly are, while reminding us of our roots. Images that in some way or another can help people to respect and appreciate our planet by taking into account the world we live in, its people, its species and its environmental impact.
I draw my inspiration from my love to travel and explore new cultures and territories. My vision is to capture the connection that exists among cultures and the spiritual experiences in one's life.

Jenny Brover
JENNY BROVER is a documentary and travel photographer currently based in Jersey City. She is inspired by exploration, chance encounters and experiencing other cultures, and she believes that art should bring about awareness and social action. Her most recent series focus on human rights issues, but for this exhibit she has chosen to showcase some of her favorite travel portraits and street scenes.
She frequently exhibits her work in Jersey City. Her series on refugee camps in Greece, Open Borders, was featured in the gallery space of the Jersey City Theater Center (JCTC) in conjunction with the play, And Then They Came for Me, the story of Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss, and concurrently as part of a fund-raiser for Syrian refugees by the Jersey City Vigil for Refugees (JCVR). The series was also on display at a benefit event for First Friends of NJ/
NY, an organization supporting detained immigrants and asylum seekers. One photograph from the series was exhibited at the Aperture Foundation Summer Open of 2017 in New York City. Her second series on refugees, this time in Serbia, was recently published with an article in Oxford University’s Border Criminologies blog. Select images from that series will also be on display at Jersey City Theater Center from April 13th - 30th in the group show “Resistance.”
Jenny received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2006, and has since participated in photography workshops at Charles University in Prague, the International Center of Photography and the Aperture Foundation in New York, and the Istituto Europeo di Design in Rome. She has been working as a commercial photographer and graphic/web designer for the past decade. She is dedicated to volunteering with populations in need.